National Holidays

National holidays are basically like an extended weekend. Things will run on "weekend" time: so sometimes fewer trains, and tourist sites are much less likely to close. Things get a little busier than a normal weekend, but not by that much. There will be more festivals on than usual.

As for the names of the holidays, they're a bit random. Tomorrow's "Marine Day". If it's hot, I might go for a swim, but the two things aren't actually connected. People are just as likely to go and climb a mountain as on actual "Mountain Day".

I visited Kurama recently, but it wasn't the fire festival, so wasn't that crowded. I imagine the festival's pretty cool though. Omi-Hachiman has a fabulous fire festival, incidentally, but in spring rather than autumn.

:-) OK, the meaning of national holiday understood. I don't always pay attention to the dates of holidays in countries I'm visiting, and sometimes get caught out with the reduced transportation.

National holidays have banks closed as well as post offices and government offices. Keep this in mind if you feel you might need to avail yourself of one. The days before and after such holidays might see a greater influx of users, too.

Thanks. I think I'll add these national holidays to my calendar, as a reminder.

Culture day often means an extended long weekend for people, especially those in education, as many schools have their festivals at that time. Also, since it's the beginning of fall foliage season, it can be very busy with local and international tourists. So in hotspots like Kyoto you might have trouble securing affordable accommodation. Otherwise, there's nothing special about it.

It has been interesting to follow the ebb and flow of the tourism tide on sites such as booking.com. As the tide comes in, certain areas of cities and price classes fill up first, followed by other areas as the incoming tide rises.

As the Japan residents already know, Saturday vacancies can be problematic at any time. Saturday rates can also be 20-30% higher than the rest of the week.

I think I'll lock in accom reservations now, at places with a generous free cancellation policy. That way I have some security, and also have the freedom to improvise with my itinerary while underway. I suspect that many others do precisely the same thing, which explains the lack of vacancies even 3-4 months in advance.

Or just do as I do, and bring a tent... ;-)

Lots of good places to camp by the lake in Shiga.

Well ... I do have a lightweight 1-person tent and half length therma-rest mat which I use for my overnight hiking trips. Both weigh in around 3-4kg. But I'll skip that option for this trip.

Making hotel reservations is already giving me a taste of Japanese culture. When you make a reservation on booking.com you're asked to provide an approximate arrival time. I have always given one and then forget about the matter. I just show up 'whenever' and have never heard anything from a hotel before I arrived.

I did the same with my first booking (in Tokyo), saying I'd show up around 12-13h . The hotel replied within a few hours that check-in was 3pm but that I could store my luggage until then. So for the next two bookings I gave my early arrival time and also explained that so long as I could store luggage, I was satisfied with the later check-in. Both replied, thanking me for my understanding and, yes, they'd store luggage until check-in.

I repeated the procedure for my 4th booking, this time also asking for a quiet room, if possible (it's a request that I sometimes make if I think I'll be in a noisy location). I received the now-standard reply about the early arrival, and luggage can be stored if I let them know of this request ahead of time. They then apologized that they could not guarantee a quiet room, asked for my understanding on this matter, and promised me that they would do their best to meet my request.

It all doesn't fit with my usual habit of winging it, but I think I'll enjoy making the adjustments.

Yes, Japanese hotel etiquette is different from elsewhere.

At proper hotels, with permanent receptions, it's not a big deal when you tell them you'll turn up. No one ever complains if you turn up early. I usually offer the latest time I think I might get there, and if I arrive early, no one bats an eyelid. But many smaller hotels/guesthouses in Japan are run by only one or two people. If they think you're turning up at 8PM, then they might be out buying groceries at 6PM, so no-one's there when you turn up early.